Description

Your pre-staff piano students will go nuts over sight-reading when they play this beginning piano sight-reading game – Feed the Nutcracker!

This adorable sight-reading game includes 30 melodies from Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker.

These short off-staff melodies help beginner piano students strengthen their sight-reading and ear training as they play this interactive hands-on sight-reading activity.

Students will also strengthen their recognition of the white piano keys, right hand and left hand, piano finger numbers, steady beat, and more!

Sight-read the melody, feed the Nutcracker, and collect an almond card. The player with the most almond cards at the end wins!

This pre-reading beginning piano sight-reading game is fabulous for private piano lessons and group piano.

Feed the Nutcracker beginning piano sight-reading game includes:

• 30 melodies from The Nutcracker Ballet by Tchaikovsky.
• Range: Pre-staff notes with all letters of the music alphabet in the note heads.
• Note Values: Quarter, half, dotted half, whole.
• Rest Values: Quarter and half rests.
• Keys: A few accidentals are included within the melodies. No key signatures beyond 0 sharps and flats are used.
• Other: Single-line melodies. Sharps and flats. Ties.
• The melodies might be in different keys or octaves, or have modified rhythms to give your students opportunities to sight-read melodies in multiple keys and ranges.
• Time signatures are not included.
• Dynamics and articulation markings are not included.
• Finger numbers are included, along with “RH” and “LH” where appropriate.
• Includes instructions for teacher/student game and student only game.
• BONUS: Includes instructions for printing an extra-large Nutcracker onto 2 sheets of card stock and a MEGA-LARGE Nutcracker onto 4 sheets of card stock! This will be a phenomenal addition to your studio in December, and your students will love it!

How this pre-reading beginning piano sight-reading game benefits your students

Feed the Nutcracker pre-reading beginning piano game is a fun piano sight-reading activity that is perfect for those last few minutes of a piano lesson.

Use this pre-staff beginning piano sight-reading game to help beginner piano students continue working on their sight-reading and ear training in an engaging and interactive way.

• Helps them focus on the details of a very short piece of music (4 measures).
• Gives them the opportunity to sight-read a variety of familiar melodies from The Nutcracker.
• Provides a way for students to view sight-reading as a fun activity from their first few weeks of piano lessons.
• This pre-staff sight-reading activity is beneficial for students in private lessons and group piano lessons.
• Feed the Nutcracker can also be used as a starting point to teach your students about music history, ballet, and more!

Using this pre-reading beginning piano sight-reading game with your students

This fun and versatile pre-staff piano sight-reading game can easily be used in a variety of settings with students who are classified as beginner piano. Here are a few suggestions:

• Private piano lessons
• Group piano classes or group lessons
• Music camps
• Piano parties
• As an ice-breaker activity
• A team-building activity
• In a game station after a recital
• Play this beginning piano sight-reading game instead of sight-reading from books or formal sight-reading materials
• To introduce melodies from The Nutcracker in an interactive way

Game Option #1: Teacher and Student: Ear Training

1. Place the melody cards into the second bag (the one without the nutcracker on it) and shake to shuffle.
2. The student draws 2 melody cards.
3. The teacher plays the melody on one of the cards.
4. If the student correctly chooses which melody the teacher played, the student feeds that card to the nutcracker and puts the other card back into the shuffle bag. The student collects an almond card.
5. If the student chooses incorrectly, both cards go back into the shuffle bag. The student does not collect an almond card
6. Continue playing until you run out of time or all the cards have been fed to the nutcracker.
7. The player who has collected the most almonds is the winner!

Game Option #2: Student Only: Sight-Reading

1. Place the melody cards into the second bag (the one without the nutcracker on it) and shake to shuffle.
2. The student draws a melody card and plays the melody.
3. If the student plays the melody correctly, the student feeds the card to the nutcracker. The student collects an almond card.
4. If the student plays the card incorrectly, the card goes back into the shuffle bag. The student does not collect an almond card.
5. The student continues playing until all the cards have been fed to the nutcracker, or until you run out of time.
6. The player who has collected the most almonds is the winner!

Learn More About Pre-Reading Beginning Piano Sight-Reading Game

Need some inspiration for implementing this game into weekly piano lessons?

• Read some great ideas for using this beginning piano sight-reading game in piano lessons
• Learn 10 Ways to Use Sight-Reading Games in Piano Lessons.
• Learn 4 Ways to Use Feed the Music Monster Sight-Reading Games with your piano students.

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